Budget reveals path Tony Abbott took into office

It has now become clearly undeniable that our Prime Minister lied his way into The Lodge ("Budget backlash grows", May 15). Strong language, I know, but I don't wish to sugar-coat a word the dictionary defines as "an intentionally false statement". No matter which way he spins it or plays with the semantics of language, it is now clear the Prime Minister never had any intention of honouring a significant number of solemn commitments he made before the election.

The important thing to remember is that the term of this government can last only a maximum of three years. The important task for the electorate is to remember this deceit right up to election day, which shall occur sometime within the next two and half years, and cast its vote appropriately.

Given the litany of broken promises and the irrefutable proof of the quotes, perhaps we should in future refer to the Prime Minister as "Truthless Tony" ("Abbott denies breaching faith", May 15).

Ron Wessel Mount St Thomas

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With reference to the much-maligned budget, Australians have been living for too long in a fool’s paradise, relying on mineral wealth and farm produce to fill the coffers. As a result, we have been paying ourselves too much to do too little, and reality has finally caught up. The budget demands are not excessive, and necessary for the overall good of the country. So stop the selfish whingeing, pay up and get over it.

Martin Burton Bayview

The Coalition’s budget reveals that the thinking behind their harsh and inhumane policies towards refugees has now shifted towards the domestic population of Australia. The elderly, students and young people are not behind bars guarded by private security firms. However, as the Treasurer so proudly trumpets, they can no longer feel secure that our nation cares about them, for their health, their future educational chances or for the environment young people, including my grandchildren, will inherit from us. This is not what my father fought for in World War II, nor his uncle in World War I.

Rose Costelloe Cook (ACT)

David Knowles (Letters, May 15), you fell for the Coalition's core lie, that Labor left the economy in a mess. Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey nevertheless made promises they had no intention of keeping. For me the insanity would be to ever trust the Liberal/National parties again.

Sandra Pertot Diamond Beach

To all those pensioners, families, road users, the halt and the lame who now complain bitterly about the horror budget and its effect on their lives, I say this: "Cop it sweet." You fell for the transparent rhetoric of the government when it was in opposition and voted for this bunch of dissemblers. So stop complaining and swallow the bitter pill of your own folly.

Frank Wilkie Peregian Beach (Qld)

John Howard's 1996 austerity budget was met, like this one, with howls of rage. A few short years later that rage was silenced by a pre-election bribe of a fistful of dollars. I wonder how long it will take this time before the outrage over the current budget and the destruction of social justice are muzzled.

The Coalition ideology of reducing government does not increase choice, it does not provide equality of opportunity, it does not promote social cohesion; instead it separates us into the haves and the have-nots. It destroys social values that include care for the most vulnerable, punishes disadvantage and creates a society of individuals whose only concern is, "what's in it for me?" What will we sell ourselves for in three years’ time – 30 pieces of silver?

John Bailey Canterbury

To balance Andrew Partos' letter (May 15), would he and others who voted for Labor in 2007/2010 please fund the deficit they caused and hang their heads in shame. They don't learn from history.

Clive McLellan Baulkham Hills

After several months of grave warnings from Canberra that the sky was about to fall culminated in Tuesday's drastically mis-aimed economies, Donald Horne's words from The Lucky Country still ring true 50 after they were written: "Australia is a lucky country, run by second-rate people who share its luck."

Phil Rodwell Redfern

Tony, you have now been upgraded to wearing Budget Smugglers.

Gerald McCallum Mosman

Who will rid us of this meddlesome priest?

Deborah Webb Huntleys Cove

Insulation inquiry may yet trip Tony Abbott

With four installer deaths and 200 house fires it must have seemed a perfect opportunity to spend $20 million of taxpayers' money to embarrass ministers of the former government ("Rudd gagged by secrecy demands: SC’’, May 15). No worry that coronial inquiries had already been held, or that the new government would be breaching a century-old convention by providing its predecessors' cabinet documents to the commission.

Home insulation was expedited to inject money into the economy to save Australian jobs and avoid the ravages of the global financial crisis. While it may be interesting to know how the ministers and public servants devised and managed the scheme, the installations were handled by contractors and employers who had responsibility for providing a safe workplace.

Unfortunately for Tony Abbott, the royal commission is competing for media coverage with the ICAC inquiry in NSW with its rising count of Liberal scalps and with the backlash to his first budget. The commission must have looked like a good idea at the time but the Prime Minister ignored the old rule that you should never set up an inquiry unless you already know the result.

James Moore Kingsgrove

Senate should block Supply Bill because voters were misled

We now have a real emergency (‘‘New senators could still block Hockey’s budget’’, May 15). An emergency of confidence by the Australian people that the last Coalition election campaign amounted to false advertising. I hope the Senate blocks all the budget bills. Tony Abbott has no mandate for this budget. He should call an election, and if he refuses the Senate should block supply.

Denis Goodwin Dee Why

Given the Senate's stated intention to block various budget measures (as invariably happens at this time of year), isn't it somehow reasonable to allow those who win the majority in the House of Representatives to run with the ball for a few years until the next election – because surely there isn't too much real damage that a government can do in that time which a new incoming government can't undo (unless, of course, once they get into power they realise that the measures may have had some validity after all).

Kirk Wilson Berowra

Best option, lift GST

I’m disappointed but not surprised by the one-eyed noise the budget has generated (‘‘ ‘A kick in the guts’: states turn on Abbott over cuts’’, May 15). There was bipartisan support, a year ago, for the NDIS and the Gonski educational reforms; we also had Tony Abbott's paid parental leave scheme. Despite the fact that we all knew none of these proposals were properly funded there was overwhelming public support for NDIS and Gonski. Now we are wondering how to pay for all this.

The only real solution is to increase the GST rate or cancel the spending (‘‘Treasurer lets cat out of the bag for introducing a higher GST’’, May 15). We know both NDIS and Gonski will go ahead. The Australian GST rate is among the lowest in the world, with Britain at 20 per cent Sweden at 25 per cent, New Zealand at 15 per cent.

Guy Hallowes Lane Cove

Small beer for Hockey – too bad about us

An Olympic-sized swimming pool contains 2.5 million litres, or about 8.8 million middies of beer, which at $3 a glass is about $26.4 million (‘‘Hockey's beer economy’’, smh.com.au. May 15). Therefore, the Joint Strike Fighters will only cost about 470 swimming pools of beer. Sounds much more reasonable than $12.4 billion, doesn't it, Joe Hockey?

John Tuckfield Abbotsford

It seems obvious from the comments by Joe Hockey that, when you are fully supported by the government to the extent that he is, $7 is not a great deal of money. It’s a shame about the rest of us.

Brian Johnstone Leura

What's the logic in medical research?

How come the government is saying our ageing population is a huge financial burden, and yet they're spending $20 billion on medical research (Letters, May 15) aimed at making us live longer?

Tim Wilson Lapstone

Medical research into what exactly – heartlessness?

Jo Dodds Bega

Keep our health care

My dad didn't take much interest in the 2014 federal budget. He died last night. But the experience taught me something. The professionalism of the public health system, and the nursing staff in particular, was outstanding. In his last hours, as my father struggled for breath, a nurse tried several positions and different oxygen masks to give him comfort. She succeeded and this also gave relief to his family at the bedside. One of my first thoughts this morning is that goodwill and devotion might not be enough in future. Public hospital staff need adequate staffing and resources to deliver quality service. We have a world-class health-care system. Australia should maintain it.

David Gallan Tathra

Youth, be damned

How dare the government dump young people who are trying to make something of their lives ("Fears that young people will be condemned to suffer life of poverty", May 15). We need to nurture our future citizens, not consign them to the dust heap. Surely the benchmark for continuing to fund a program is how successful it is? The 80 per cent success rate of Youth Connections more than qualifies it for funding into the future.

A slide into crime or mental illness by young people abandoned in this way will end up costing the government far more than the paltry amount it is wresting from this program. Shame on our so-called leaders.

Jeannette Tsoulos West Pymble

Pray it won't happen

I feel that Philip Comans (Letters, May 15) may have missed the point on school chaplains ("Education union blasts budget funding for chaplains", May 15). With most of the $245 million coming out of science and green energy funding, our children will need to learn how to pray to some "magic-sky-daddy" in the futile hope that something can save them as the world fries. As Joe Hockey said, we need to leave something for the next generation and hope is all we’ll have left.

Leo Sullivan Haberfield

Beware the underclass

The government seems to think that a university education is a privilege of the well-off (‘‘Poor to pay more for uni degrees’’, May 15). I am sorry, Mr Hockey, but if you proceed down this track, Australia is destined to be a Third World country with a very small wealthy elite and a huge underclass.

Gill Graham Bowral

Back to bike basics in battle for roads

Elizabeth Farrelly, I admit that I do not like driving behind bicycle riders on the road (‘‘NSW on a road to ruin without bikes’’, May 15). That is not because of “bike hate” or that they represent “cultural change”. It is because I am in a two-tonne vehicle with hundreds of other vehicles on the same road and I do not want to see another human being hurt. When you ride a bike, you are essentially unprotected. And when cars and bikes share the same road, that makes us drivers nervous.

Frank Hanna Punchbowl

Spot on, Elizabeth Farrelly. Every time I ride my bike I'm saving everyone money in so many ways. I am not "freeloading" off car drivers. Bikes are as close as anyone has ever got to a "perfect" form of transport. They say it's impossible to be sad while skipping (try it). The same applies to bike riding. Have these car drivers completely forgotten their childhood? Get on a bike and see what I mean.

Stuart Davis Coogee

P&C shame

Shame on those few members of the NSW Federation of Parents and Citizens Associations who have sullied the hard work of parents who have worked with teachers to improve public schools (‘‘Rivals unhappy at axing of NSW P&C’’, May 14). The structure proposed by the Minister has no place for parents to represent their children in curriculum development, in advocating for children with learning difficulties or for supporting parents to be leaders in their school communities. We have been taken back to the 1960s.